Each 50-gram portion (about 1.8 ounces) eaten daily increases colon cancer risk by 18 percent. That number sounds high, but it likely means a small increase in the actual number of cancer cases, Onitilo said.

“The risk is never going to be zero percent,” he said.

Processed meat was listed as a Group 1 carcinogen along with tobacco smoking and asbestos, but the classification doesn’t mean they’re equally dangerous, according to the WHO website. It only means substances in the group are known to cause cancer.